Andre Villas-Boas has been assured that Gareth Bale will stay at Tottenham
even if they fail to qualify for the Champions League next season.

Bale has attracted interest from leading European clubs including Barcelona, Real Madrid and Manchester City with his superb displays this season.

On Thursday he added the Football Writers’ Association player of the season award to the player of the year and young player of the year honours that the Professional Footballers’ Association gave him last weekend.

However, Tottenham chairman Daniel Levy has promised Villas-Boas that he would not consider selling his star asset even if they fail to reach the Champions League.

“The information that I have from the club is that the player is here to remain, independent of the objectives of Champions League qualification being achieved,” the head coach said. “Whatever price tag the player has doesn’t matter because he’s our player. He’s a player we have to hold on to for the remaining seasons to make sure that we continue to progress.

“We understand that the more awards, the more recognition the player will have, but the club has to move forward by holding on to its best players. With the recognition and the experience that he has had this year, next year for Tottenham will be even more assertive.”

Meanwhile, Villas-Boas expects Manchester United manager Sir Alex Ferguson to play his strongest team against Chelsea on Sunday. United have won the title, but could play a major role in deciding which teams will follow them into the Champions League next season. Spurs are fifth, three points behind Chelsea in third.

Villas-Boas said: “Sir Alex is an extremely competitive manager. We saw an example of that against Arsenal and I don’t think Manchester United will be doing anything differently against Chelsea. Players who win titles have a great winning mentality and want to win every game. I expect Chelsea to have a very difficult game.”